Innocent Charmer
by DixonVixen93
Summary: Post "Welcome To The Tombs", Pre "30 Days Without An Accident": Karen was slowly, but surely, making herself valuable within Team Prison. When she starts to bond with a certain crossbow-wielding redneck, just how will her value show? AU. Karen/Daryl


**Hey you guys! I have no idea how well this will be received, so here goes. Takes place sometime between "Welcome to the Tombs" and "30 Days without an Accident". **

**I do not own The Walking Dead. By the way, I'm most certainly not giving up on Caryl. This pairing is just an experiment 'kay? Even if I do write more, it'll never replace Caryl. **

_**Innocent Charmer**_

Karen had found herself more comfortable within her home at the prison. Woodbury had been a wonderful place to live in for her and her son, until the Governor decided to go medieval on everyone whom trusted him. Now it was just Karen, trying to get a rhythm back in her life. Noah had been murdered by their former leader, along with the countless other soldiers. She was still in the midst of grieving for her son, but that didn't stop her from trying to step up for Team Prison.

She had been put in charge of teaching the children there. Carol worked alongside her, and the two of them came up with the idea of story time. Both women traded off on the days that they would teach. (This had been a good thing for Carol. When she started teaching the kids how to use knives, she suggested the switch. The last thing that she needed was for word to get out that she was training children how to wield bladed weapons.)

After a while, though, Karen started to get more involved with the group. She was allowed to work the fence, and kill the clusters of walkers that would group around searching for food. The brunette even started to go out on supply runs, first with Michonne and Maggie, and then, one day, she got stuck with Daryl Dixon. He wasn't in the best of moods, but he put up with her anyway. Karen couldn't blame him, though; there were a small number of people in this world that she would trust now-a-days.

There was something about the redneck, though. Something that the woman just couldn't shake off of her mind. Karen would make conversation with him, just because he was so fascinating. He wasn't one to talk to women; if she brought up a touchy subject, she would know instantly on the count of his disgruntled responses. She wasn't shy about talking to a hunk like Daryl Dixon. And the more she could get him to talk, the more he grew to trust her.

This proceeded to be a problem, however, when Tyreese tried to court Karen. Admittedly, she thought he was sweet and wanted to give him a chance, but he wasn't who she really wanted. The more time she got to know Tyreese, the more she realized just how severely he lacked the balls that he was supposedly equipped with. She didn't quite know how to put it to him that she _wasn't _interested anymore. He was a sweetheart, sure, he was just too _much_ of a sweetheart.

Daryl Dixon had it all. He had a soft, squishy side, as well as a backwoods tough-as-nails exterior. He was someone you wanted by your side when shit began to hit the fan. His looks just happened to be icing on a perfectly layered cake. The only problem with Daryl, though, was his history with Carol. She had to figure out what was going on there. Pushing two years, and neither one of them had made a move? Karen knew that, if she were Carol, she would have made that move a while back.

o—o—o

Daryl came thundering out to the courtyard, his trusty crossbow thrown across his shoulder as usual. He came up to the fence where Karen was busily killing the surrounding walkers.

"'ey, princess get your ass in gear. We're goin' on a run," he told the former Woodburian, getting an amused look in return.

"We are?" Karen quirked an eyebrow, letting her weapon fall to her side. "This is news to me."

"Yeah, well we ain't got much choice. Li'l Ass-Kicker's gonna need some formula an' I ain't tryin' ta let the youngen go hungry," the redneck shrugged. "Ya don't hafta go. I'll grab Maggie or Carol."

"Nah, I'll go," the brunette waved her hand dismissively. "Going a little stir crazy around here."

Daryl nodded towards Karen. "A'right. Let's get goin' then."

The two of them packed up and were ready to go within the next few minutes. Like normal, Karen would try to strike up a conversation, but Daryl didn't have much to say, _also_ like normal.

"So, as a part of the council, are you allowed to announce any kind of holiday that you'd want? 'Cause you know Christmastime is right around the corner, right?" Karen began, glancing over at the redneck.

Daryl just shrugged. "Ya mean you actually keep track o' that shit? I don't bother. Ain't no 'Merry Christmas' around here anymore."

"I always kept track of holidays, birthdays," Karen sighed, adding "Noah's birthday was on Christmas Eve, so—"

The younger Dixon brother grew quiet after that. It won't easy losin' family; it still stung today knowing his big brother wouldn't be coming back. "Sorry," Daryl murmured, "sucks."

She smiled sadly and glanced down at her hands that were tucked in her lap. "It does. But that's life on a daily basis anymore."

Daryl nodded, concentrating on the road ahead. Karen didn't like the quiet, so she decided to start another conversation.

"Why did you decide to take _me_ on the run? I appreciate it and all, but I'm just curious," the Italian woman began, eyebrows risen.

The redneck snorted. "Don't let it go to your head, princess. Carol was doin' laundry, and Michonne was bitchin'. She didn't wanna go 'cause she had a headache or some shit."

Karen began to chuckle, propping her elbow against her car door. "Thanks for the honesty, Daryl."

"Anytime," Daryl replied with the ghost of a smirk. He decided against taking his brother's bike, on the count that they could take more shit with them if they'd just use a bigger vehicle to go out on the run. "'Sides," the redneck added with a shrug, "yer a good shot."

The former schoolteacher rose an eyebrow towards him. Daryl Dixon didn't compliment just anyone like that. "Was that a compliment?" When he just gave her a pointed look, Karen began to laugh again. "Well, thanks."

Daryl began to slow down, as the store was finally in sight. There were ransacked vehicles everywhere, some still with rotting corpses inside. The younger Dixon brother shook his head and kept driving.

"Where are all of the biters?" Karen asked, glancing around at the ruins.

"They all had a big siesta, from the looks o' it and moved on. Reckon they ran outta people to eat," the redneck pulled up to the store entrance, turning the engine off. He turned to his fellow survivor before adding, "could be inside. Best stay alert," with a quick nod.

The woman nodded, feeling around for the gun at her hip. "You got my back, I got yours," Karen shared a look with Daryl, her voice breathy.

Daryl nodded once, stepping out of the car. He fixated his eyes on the woman as she followed suit. The redneck was well aware of all of the females that would love to be on his arms, but he just didn't care to think much about it. He loved Carol, he really did, but things just never seemed to work out between the two of them. And, he had to admit, after spending quite some time with Karen, she was beginning to grow on him.

Both survivors kept their weapons drawn as they entered the store. Surely enough, one of the first things that they see was a cluster of walkers feasting on a fresh corpse. The whole room reeked of rotting flesh, something that the brunette swore that she would never get used to. Karen looked over at Daryl, who just gestured her to follow his lead.

They cut around the narrow aisles to avoid the cluster of walkers. It worked out to where they could separate, grab what they needed to grab, and get the hell out of dodge.

"You grab Little Ass-Kicker's formula, diapers an' all o' that, while I go raid what I can food wise. We gonna have some hungry folks up in that prison," Daryl muttered to his female counterpart. "Can ya do that?"

Karen nodded, gripping her pistol tighter. "Absolutely."

The younger Dixon brother sent her one last look before creeping out of her sight.

When she was left by herself, Karen had to take a deep, cleansing breath. It was dark inside, the only light she had was coming from the flashlight in her opposite hand. She cautiously crept around, keeping an eye open for the baby section. It was a little weird for her to be doing this again. She hadn't been around this section for quite some time now. The former schoolteacher knew that she couldn't let herself fall apart like this. And, right now, if she allowed herself to think about Noah, that was what she would be doing. She'd be falling apart, and Daryl would have to rescue her ass. That would _definitely_ kill any chance she ever had with him.

The brunette finally reached the aisle, surprisingly calm. She started bagging all of the baby supplies that she could find, unaware of an approaching walker. It began shuffling closer to her, grabbing her from behind. Karen's brown eyes widened in fear, but she knew better than to scream. The woman knew that she had to act fast, but she couldn't be loud. She dropped her bag and went for the knife in her pocket, stabbing the walker repeatedly in the head.

Karen tossed the walker off her and sent it tumbling to the floor. With adrenaline coursing through her veins, the brunette finished packing everything. By the time she met up with Daryl, he had at least a week's worth of food for the group. Unfortunately, they couldn't live solely on the meat that he hunted for.

Daryl took a quick glance at Karen, noticing the blood on her shirt. He grumbled a little as he began, "you get into some trouble or somethin'?"

"Huh?" the former schoolteacher glanced down at her blouse, "oh. Biter about took a good chunk outta me back there. I handled it."

The redneck quirked an eyebrow. "A'right. Jus' 'slong as ya didn't get bit or anythin'."

Karen shook her head. "No, but I did clear off the baby section," she added, smiling.

"Good. C'mon, let's get this back to the prison," Daryl sent her the resemblance of a smile before heading out of the store. She followed suit, helping the redneck load the car up to go.

Before either of them could move to get in the car, though, their eyes met. It put them both in a trance, one that Daryl had to force himself out of. He shut the trunk and left Karen standing there, just shaking her head, finding herself still smiling.

"C'mon, woman, we gotta go!" Daryl snapped.

Sure, they did. But, firstly, Karen knew that she had some business to take care of. She wasn't one to sit back and let her feelings be untold. Even if said feelings were for a hunky, crossbow-wielding redneck. She joined Daryl back in the car, and when he wanted to see what took her so long, Karen answered him by giving him a quick peck on the lips.

Before he could bitch at her, she went to explain herself, "Look, Daryl, I know that you don't make many moves on women, so I thought that I'd save you the trouble. I'm more than attracted to you. If you don't feel the same, then y'know, that's just okay."

The redneck shook his head. He wasn't sure if he was dreamin' or not. Usually, he didn't have the guts to go through with it. Usually, he'd turn the woman away uncomfortably. This time, however, with this girl, it was different. There was a fire behind her eyes; something that told him that she would never back down from a challenge. And damn if it wasn't sexy. It was time for a change; they obviously both needed the release. Daryl pulled the Italian woman closer to him, closing the gap between their lips.

**And this is where I'll end this oneshot. It could be more, though, but it's all up to ya'll. Thoughts, concerns? Tell me how this experiment turned out! **


End file.
